1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a chocolate mush meltaway that is dispensable from a torque controlled dispensing machine and that conforms in shape to a container into which it is dispensed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring first to FIG. 1, a typical piece of chocolate candy 35 is illustrated. The candy piece 35 has two major components, a center 33 and a coating 34. As is well known, the center 33 may be any of a wide variety of products such as flavored cremes and caramel. It is also well known to add nuts to the center. Similarly, a wide variety of products can be used for the coating 34. A very common coating is a chocolate product.
A particularly desirable product for the center 33 is a meltaway. As used in the context of this invention, the word “meltaway” means a mixture of ingredients that contain chocolate, oil, and fluor salt. A “meltaway” may optionally contain a flavor. Accordingly, a combination of chocolate, oil, and salt is considered to be a meltaway whether or not the combination contains a flavor.
In turn, the word “chocolate” as used in the context of the present invention means any of a variety of ingredients that are understood by persons skilled the candy making arts to be based on chocolate. Without being limited, the word “chocolate” includes ingredients of real chocolate containing cocoa butter and/or chocolate liquor. Real chocolate may be milk, dark, or white chocolate. The word chocolate further includes confectionery coatings as know in the art that contain vegetable oil, and such may be milk, dark, white, or peanut coatings. The word chocolate further includes pastel coatings containing vegetable oils, and the pastel coatings may be white, peanut, pink, green, yellow, red, or other colors. Moreover, the word chocolate includes sugar-free coatings such as are marketed under the trademarks Mannitol, Maltitol, and Lactitol. The sugar-free coatings are available as milk, dark, and white chocolate. They are cocoa butter and chocolate liquor based and are not vegetable oil. Finally, the word chocolate includes products typically used as ice cream coating or liquid ice cream chips. Each of the chocolate ingredients listed above is typically a solid at ordinary room temperatures and has its own particular melting point.
As used in the context of the present invention, the word “oil” includes ingredients of saturated fats, unsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, monounsaturated fats, and fat substitutes. Further, the word “oil” means any combination of the foregoing kinds of fats. Each of the oil ingredients listed has its own specific melting temperature.
As used in the context of the present invention, the word “salt” or “fluor salt” means ingredients of ordinary sodium chloride in granular or flake form, as is known in the candy making industry.
As used in the context of the present invention, the word “flavor” includes specialty flavoring ingredients well-known in the candy arts such as malt, nuts, fruits, peanut butter, vanilla, mint, maple, coffee, raspberry, orange, lemon, and cherry.
A particular prior meltaway center 33 is made from any desired combination of chocolate, oil, and fluor salt, and optional flavor. The physical characteristics of the meltaway is determined by the particular chocolate ingredient, oil ingredient, and salt ingredient. Important physical characteristic include taste, color, melting temperature, and consistency at approximate room temperature.
A typical prior meltaway center 33 is manufactured from a chocolate ingredient of a real chocolate containing cocoa butter such as is marketed by the Blommer Company. That chocolate ingredient has a melting temperature of approximately 90 to 95 degrees F. The oil ingredient is a coconut oil such as is marketed under the trademark Konut having a melting point of approximately 76 degrees F. The ratio of chocolate to oil is approximately five parts chocolate to one part oil by weight. For a quantity of approximately 40 pounds of chocolate and eight pounds of oil, two ounces of fluor salt, such is available from the Cargil Company, are used. However, the exact amount of salt used can vary to suit the taste.
The chocolate ingredient is melted in a melting machine to approximately 140 degrees F. in known manner, at which temperature it is a liquid. After a short stirring time such as about five minutes in the melting machine, the liquid chocolate is poured into a large kettle such as a Hobart M-80 kettle that is used with Hobart Model 800 mixing machines. Then the oil and fluor salt are added, along with any optional flavor. At this point, the mixture temperature is about 120 degrees F., and its viscosity is on the order of cream. The kettle is transferred to the mixing machine, which is fit with a whipper paddle. The mixing machine is located in a temperature controlled room of approximately 65 to 70 degrees F., and preferably about 68 degrees. The ingredients are stirred and slowly cooled over several hours. As the mixture approaches 87 degrees F., it starts to thicken. The room temperature cannot be too much below the melting point of the mixture or the mixture will freeze on the edge of the Hobart kettle. The mixture is stirred until it reaches about 75 to 77 degrees. At that point, the mixture is a semi-solid similar to warm butter, soft-serve ice cream, or soft-serve ice milk. Like butter, the mixture will stay as a liquid when the room temperature is too warm, but at cool temperatures the mixture becomes hard.
The mixture, indicated by reference numeral 25 in FIG. 2, is poured onto a table 31 in the temperature controlled room and spread out. The temperature of the room and table 30 further cool the mixture to about 65 to 70 degrees. At that temperature, the mixture spreads evenly and hardens to form a slab 26, FIG. 3. Side bars 31 are placed on the table 30 to define an area for spreading the semi-solid mixture 25 on the table. The next step is to use cutters 32 to cut the slab 26 into small meltaway pieces 33′. Lastly, the small pieces of meltaway 33′ are coated with a chocolate coating, such as the chocolate coating 34, to form the end piece of candy 35. The coating 34 has a higher melting temperature than the melting temperature of about 837 degrees for the meltaway, so that the candy piece can be handled without melting.
It will be appreciated, of course, that the particular melting temperatures and other characteristics of the meltaway 33′ described are determined by the specific real chocolate, coconut oil, and fluor salt used, as well as to their specific proportions. Other proportions of the same ingredients will result in different mixture and end product characteristics. For example, nine pounds of oil will make a softer meltaway, and seven pounds of oil makes a thicker and denser meltaway than the one made with the eight pounds of oil described above. Similarly, a different chocolate ingredient and salt ingredient will result in different intermediate characteristics and end results.
Whatever the specific chocolate, oil, and fluor salt used, the finished prior meltaway 33 is a very tasty and popular product, and very large numbers of them are made and consumed daily. On the other hand, at present the desirable flavor of the meltaway is available only in combination with the coating 34. That is because although at normal room temperatures of approximately 70 degrees F. the meltaway is a solid candy piece 33 (but undipped in a coating 34), the meltaway piece would melt in a person's hand having a body temperature of about 98 degrees. The meltaway would therefore become intolerably messy. In fact, at a temperature of about 75 to 80 degrees, the meltaway breaks down into a mushy state, and at about 80 to 90 degrees the meltaway melts completely. Consequently, handling the meltaway 33′ in the semi-solid state above temperatures of about 65 to 70 degrees previously occurred only as an intermediate step in the manufacture of candy pieces 35. As a result, consumers were previously unable to obtain or enjoy just the meltaways, such as in a retail store setting.